Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) apparatuses, magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) apparatuses, and the like have been known as magnetic resonance systems using a nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) phenomenon.
An MRI apparatus acquires a cross-sectional image of a human body by using the NMR phenomenon. Since nuclei of hydrogen (1H), phosphorus (31P), sodium (23Na), carbon isotope (13C), and the like constituting the human body respectively have a unique constant of rotating magnetic field by the NMR phenomenon, a cross-sectional image of the human body may be acquired by applying high frequency signals to a magnetization vector of each of the nuclei aligned in a direction of a main magnetic field by using a radio frequency (RF) coil, and receiving magnetic resonance signals, which are generated when the magnetization vectors of the nuclei are re-aligned in a direction perpendicular to a longitudinal plane by frequency resonance, by using the RF coil.
The RF coil may include an RF antenna that transmits high frequency signals to cause the magnetization vectors to resonate and to receive the magnetic resonance signals. Both of the resonating the magnetization vectors (RF transmission mode) and receiving the magnetic resonance signals (RF reception mode) may be performed by a single RF coil (RF antenna). Alternatively, an RF coil may be used only for the RF transmission mode and another RF coil may be used only for the RF reception mode. An RF coil performing the RF transmission mode and the RF reception mode is referred to as a Tx/Rx coil. An RF coil performing the transmission mode only is referred to as a Tx coil, and an RF coil performing the reception mode only is referred to as an Rx coil. Most of the Tx coils are installed inside a main magnet and have a circular shape into which the human body is moved or a birdcage shape formed on a circular frame. On the contrary, the Rx coil is generally disposed adjacent to the human body and has various shapes in accordance with the shape of a portion of the human body.